SOL

This weekend we went for a couple of nice bike rides and picnicked for lunch.

On  Saturday  we  rode from Maussane  out towards Eygalieres,  one of our  favorite  rides.  Along the way we had lunch on a grassy patch between vineyards and olive trees.   In French, “lunch on the grass” is “le dejeuner sur l’herbe”, which is the name of a famous painting by Manet.

I pointed this out to Val and suggested we should dress like the people in the painting.  For some reason, Val was not excited about this idea.

Manet’s masterpiece

 

Val's version

Today we rode in the Luberon, along an old train route that has been converted into a bike path.  The views were awesome.  We started near the town of Saint-Pantaléon.  I’m not sure who he was but the French word pantalon is where we get the English word pants.  So I figure he must be the patron saint of trousers.

We headed north towards Apt.  The wind was a little chilly but it was at our backs so we actually got warm.  Every few kilometers Val would peel off a layer – first her sweatshirt, then her leggings, then her jacket.  I felt like we were playing strip poker and I was winning every hand!  By the time we got to Apt it was going to be a par-tay!

Unfortunately, Val decided we should stop for lunch at the ancient Roman bridge of Pont Julian and then turn around.  She started putting layers back on, so no luck for me.  But I guess the bridge was a nice consolation prize.

  

KVS

Joyeux Anniversaire !

Val outdid herself tonight, putting together an awesome dinner for Christian’s birthday.    The main  course  was  a  monkfish  tajine  and  I  can  report  with  confidence  that  there  were absolutely no leftovers.

This followed a long apéro with lots of delicious little dishes and two (or was it three?) bottles of Champagne.

We finished with a fantastic cake from a famous local baker.  Plus more Champagne.

It was great to see our friends, all of whom were neighbors two years ago when we stayed in Le Thor.  It was a chance to catch up on the neighborhood gossip, some of which was quite juicy!

The only odd thing was that at about 11:30pm my brain seemed to become saturated with French and wouldn’t absorb any more.  After that I could see people’s lips move but couldn’t understand a thing they said.  So I did what I always do in this situation – smile, nod and pour.

KVS

Yummy things to start

The famous tajine

 Action photo! 

The Color Purple

As anyone who has seen Val’s wardrobe knows, she loves purple.  And there’s a lot of purple going around right now.  Val’s been taking lots of photos and here are a few of her favorites.

KVS

 

 

Wimps

We went to Arles today to see the course camarguaise.  This is the French bullfighting where Val’s beloved young men in their tight white pants chase bulls around and nobody gets hurt.  The course is part of the big Easter festivities and so quite an event, with lots of music and horses and ladies in their traditional outfits.

We invited our friends Sandrine and Alain, who shockingly had never been to a course (we are not sure if they are really French).  They were excited to see their first one.

Unfortunately, the day was a little drizzly and when we got to the arena we found that the course had been cancelled.  For a few drops of rain!  Boy, were we disappointed.  I guess French bulls are getting wimpier these days.  Not like the tough bulls we had when I was a kid.  And Val was especially disappointed because she wanted to see those tight white pants when they got wet.

So we did what anyone would do in these circumstances – we had a three hour lunch.

KVS

Ready for action

Why do I always have to ride side saddle?

Dancing in the streets

Note the lady trying to read her paper

Where we had lunch - they might want to rename this place 

Delicious

Val’s favorite restaurant in all the world is Atelier in Arles.  As she describes it, each plate is a work of art that you get to appreciate and then eat.  So of course we had to go there for her birthday lunch.  And lucky for us, it was when both Greg and Catherine were here so we got to share it with them.

Words really can’t describe the food so I’ll let the pictures do the talking.

KVS

Catherine is enthusiastic but Greg is so excited his head bursts into flame